The West End Career Technical Education Conference May 8th and 9th Will Feature Roadtrip Nation, Garner Holt, and a Robotics Competition and Demonstration

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Hundreds of educators, parents, students, and employers are expected at the West End Career Technical Education Conference on Friday, May 8th and Saturday, May 9th at the Ontario Convention Center. The free, two day conference will welcome Road Trip Nation, Project Lead the Way California, Southern California Edison, Garner Holt of Garner Holt Productions, and the Employment Development Department among others in workshops and panels aimed at enriching 7th through 12th grade students' competency in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) and introducing them to possible career pathways.

Chino, CA (PRWEB)April 22, 2009

Hundreds of educators, parents, students, and employers are expected at the West End Career Technical Education Conference on Friday, May 8th and Saturday, May 9th at the Ontario Convention Center. The free, two day conference will welcome Road Trip Nation, Project Lead the Way California, Southern California Edison, Garner Holt of Garner Holt Productions, and the Employment Development Department among others in workshops and panels aimed at enriching 7th through 12th grade students' competency in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) and introducing them to possible career pathways.

"Chaffey College Economic Development and Community Education Department believes this conference is important so that our students in the Inland Empire will be competitive and prepared," Karen Childers with Chaffey College said. "On Friday, we welcome educators in "train the trainer" workshops. The Saturday workshops are more interactive and intended for students and parents to join educators and employers" Childers continued.

Roadtrip Nation, the PBS series and phenomenon that includes best-selling books and an on-line community, will join the conference at a panel discussion on Saturday. Roadtrip Nation is about inspiring young people to create lives and careers in exciting and various careers.

Garner Holt, founder and president of Garner Holt Productions, Inc. will deliver the keynote on Saturday titled "From My Parents' Garage to Walt Disney's Magic Kingdom." Since 1977, Garner Holt Productions, Inc. has been an innovator and creator of extraordinary animated robotics, rides, show action equipment, theme environments and magical special effects and he will discuss his life as an entrepreneur and outline his business success.

Dr. Henry Shannon, Superintendent/President of Chaffey College, will deliver Friday's keynote, "STEM 4 All - A Necessity for Student Success" and will address the need for student competency in STEM to secure well-paying, globally competitive jobs.

The Professional Development Workshops on Friday, from 8:30-1:45pm, are intended for businesspersons, teachers, counselors, career technicians, and school administrators to learn about Career Technical Education (CTE) opportunities for middle and high school students. Educators will garner ideas and hands-on lessons about strengthening CTE and will receive a toolkit to implement with students. The cost of substitute teachers will be covered by the West End Career Technical Education Collaborative (WECTEC) for teachers from the Chaffey College service area who attend this conference.

The Saturday, May 9th workshops, from 8am to 2pm, are for students, parents, educators, and community partners. The day will include complimentary breakfast and lunch, exciting and interactive workshops, a keynote address from Garner Holt, Garner Holt Productions, Inc., demonstrations of the VEX robotics competition from Inland Valley students, and much more.

"This is a great opportunity for parents to meet with employers and find out how educators and employers are working together to re-engage students in the learning process," added Kathy Dutton, Director, Economic Development/Community Education with Chaffey College.

The Ontario Montclair School Unified District's Education Expo will also be held on Saturday, May 9th at the Ontario Convention Center. West End CTE participants will be encouraged to explore the Expo following sessions at 2pm.

Log on to http://www.chaffey.edu/econ_dev/cte for registration information or contact Yvonne Morris, (909) 652-7779. Educators and businesspersons are encouraged to attend Friday, May 8th and Saturday, May 9th. Students and parents, employers and interested community residents are invited to attend the interactive learning sessions on Saturday, May 9th.

WECTEC activities are funded by the Governor's Career Technical Education Initiative (SB 70/SB1133) presented through with the California Community Colleges Chancellor's Office and the California Department of Education.